Round One in TPP, of
the Trans Pacific Partnership, was initiated at West Coast Ports in
the U.S. on February 13, 2015.

The point behind idling the
ports, is being made by the private global- corporations, not the
unions, in order to empty the shelves in supermarkets nationwide for
three or four weeks ­ to force the public to approve the blackmail
contained in TPP: This is part of what lies beneath the latest move
to allow international corporations to become nation-states
worldwide…

Most people will not notice the
blackmail until they can no longer buy what they go to super-markets
to buy. Trader Joe’s is already feeling fallouts from this, in San
Francisco. This will probably remain a non-topic, until it can no
longer be avoided; because no one will believe that this kind of
outrage could ever happen. But the unions have now been idled, at
some American ports, because the international-corporate owners of
the shipping companies are keeping their ships filled with perishable
goods at sea, for at least four days to make their political points
against both the unions and the public in the disunited states.

“I am extremely concerned and
disappointed in the Pacific Maritime Association’s (PMA) latest
reckless and irresponsible decision to suspend activity at ports
along the West Coast this weekend.

California’s ports drive our state’s
and our nation’s economy. The Port of Los Angeles, which is in my
district and the neighboring Port of Long Beach are the busiest ports
in the United States. The goods that are imported and exported out of
these two ports alone feed, clothe and supply vital goods to people
all over our country and throughout the world.

The latest actions by the PMA show a
blatant disregard for the workers who have built our California’s
port system, for the small, medium and large businesses across the
country that rely on stable and reliable goods movement and for the
economic security that these ports provide to our nation.

Instead of working constructively with
ILWU, Local 13 towards a fair and responsible labor contract, the PMA
has chosen to unfairly penalize workers and has shown willingness to
sacrifice the great economic recovery currently underway for their
own economic benefit.

The PMA has entered into a very dangerous
and unnecessary game. California’s and the United States’
economic security is no game ­ it is central to our national
security and to the economic wellbeing of nations and continents
throughout the world. I demand that the PMA reconsider its decision
to suspend port activity this weekend, reopen our ports, re-enter
into good faith negotiations with ILWU, Local 13 and stop being a
barrier to California’s economic recovery.”

“SAN FRANCISCO, CA (FEBRUARY 11, 2011)
— Today, the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA), a consortium of
international corporations, informed the International Longshore and
Warehouse Union (ILWU) that ships will not be worked at West Coast
Ports four of the next five days.

This action marks the second time in less
than a week that employers have idled vessels.

The same group of predominantly
foreign-owned companies also cancelled a negotiating session
scheduled today for 1pm with the ILWU’s Negotiating Committee. The
employers have not made themselves available to negotiate since
Friday of last week.

“This is an effort by the employers to
put economic pressure on our members and to gain leverage in contract
talks,” said ILWU President Robert McEllrath. “The Union is
standing by ready to negotiate, as we have been for the past several
days.”

At the same time that PMA announced this
action and cancelled today’s negotiations, PMA’s public relations
firm issued a press release that grossly mischaracterizes the ILWU’s
current bargaining position.

“It seems to us that the employers are
trying to sabotage negotiations,” said McEllrath. “They are not
just hurting workers, families and communities,” he said, “What
our employers are doing is bad for the industry and the US economy.”

Facts:

The cessation of vessel operations was
initiated by employers, and is NOT a strike by workers.

Longshore
workers earn excellent benefits and good hourly wages ranging from
$26-$41 per hour. Most are unable to work a full 2000 hours in a
normal work year. The typical pay for an experienced longshore worker
is $83,000. Longshore work is extremely hazardous, with fatality
rates exceeding those of police and firefighters.”

This is not just about food. This is
about everything that comes into this country by sea. Since the US no
longer makes its own clothing, in general, the things that the
big-box stores sell will all be directly affected, not to mention the
huge fresh fruit market that comes in from Central America every
day….

Aerial
photos of ports show what the PMA doesn’t want the public to see

...
In mid-January, PMA claimed that there was a lack of dock space for
containers, and it eliminated night shifts at many ports.

“PMA
is leaving ships at sea and claiming there’s no space on the docks,
but there are acres of asphalt just waiting for the containers on
those ships, and hundreds of longshore workers ready to unload them,”
said McEllrath. “The employers are deliberately worsening the
existing congestion crisis to gain the upper hand at the bargaining
table.”

The
union’s photos of marine terminals in Southern California that show
large tracts of space that would easily fit thousands of containers…

…The
International Longshore and Warehouse Union is based in San
Francisco, Calif., and is negotiating a contract that has covered
longshore workers at 30 West Coast ports in California, Oregon and
Washington since 1934.
...